The Jive Aces

Raestar Jazz Promotions

Walthamstow Jazz Festival

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A very quiet disclaimer

LondonJazz is a not-for profit venture, but may occasionally take on work as a paid publicist and/or sell advertising packages. Where a piece published after 26th October 2012 appears which is linked to this activity, the text will be followed by the following symbol: (pp)

I have often heard it said that jazz musicians take themselves a bit too
seriously, and sometimes I’m inclined to agree. But there’s not much doubt
that Blueblut had as much fun making their new album – Hurts so
Gut - as I had listening to it.

It’s not for the purists, but those of you familiar with Led Bib will enjoy lots of
it – their drummer Mark Holub is one member of this Vienna-based
trio. But the sound is very different. Pamelia Kurstin is probably not
the only jazz Theremin player – but she’s certainly the best known and the
only one I’ve ever come across - and her bent notes pervade this CD. The
theremin is a fascinating instrument that can move from singing to screaming
in an instant and can sometimes sound like lots of other instruments and at
other times like nothing you’ve ever heard before.

I haven’t come across Chris Janka on guitar before but he seems to
be an all round experimental sound artist who describes himself as “Flying
machine maker, sound engineer, guitarist and automata creator”.

Originally Blueblut formed for a one off concert for the Vienna Room
Service festival in 2013, but the trio apparently liked what they played so
much that they decided to continue. By the end of the year, powered by crates
of beer, curries and sweets and with open access to Chris’s basement studio,
a distinct sound and album had emerged.

The first track You think is typical (but only in its unpredictability). It
starts with some strange squawking, then wailing electronics, and then the
voice comes in to scream “Is this what you thought it was gonna be like?”
followed by a heavy rock riff and finishing up with some distorted sound. Both
the sound and the words seem to set the tone for the rest of the album.

The second track Bondàge starts with a theremin wailing a melody
over a solid guitar riff and a rock beat. Held together by the drums the sound
then gets more frenetic and electronic before returning to the melody.

So on other tracks we might get a twisted theremin walking bass, some thrash
punk guitar, a toy piano playing a nursery rhyme, strange vocal interjections,
some ethereal electronic wailing, some very jolly tunes that sound like
film music and through most of it lots of energetic driving drumming – and
sometimes you get all that on one track.

Experimental sounds and electronics can sometimes be too overpowering
and difficult. Here they are delivered with wit and a sense of fun over the
driving rock rhythms that made this an easy CD to listen to.

Blueblut are on a nine-date European tour starting at the end of
October and are appearing at the Vortex on November 3rd
with the duo of Seb Rochford with Pamelia Kurstin.